Every so often, an image in “Animals” will underline the implication of the title: that Jude and Bobbie, the drug addicts whose lives occupy the film’s attention, lead a primal, almost bestial existence. Looking at predatory cats or beluga whales (on television and at the zoos and aquariums of Chicago, where “Animals” was shot), you are invited to notice parallels to the couple’s behavior: their moments of rest and tenderness, their fights and flights, their raw, ferocious need.

But Jude (David Dastmalchian) and Bobbie (Kim Shaw) — young, attractive and described by Jude as college-educated and middle class — don’t simply dwell in a state of nature. (Literally, they dwell in a beat-up car.) They see themselves less as instinct-driven creatures than as the only members of a self-contained civilization, with rules and rituals and a strong sense of standing together against the rest of the world. They are in love with each other and with heroin, and while this ménage ultimately turns into a tragic and tawdry love triangle, it also supplies Jude and Bobbie with a sense of common purpose.

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A scene from the film directed by Collin Schiffli and starring David Dastmalchian and Kim Shaw.Published OnMay 12, 2015CreditImage by Oscilloscope Laboratories

“Animals,” directed by Collin Schiffli and written by Mr. Dastmalchian, doesn’t break new ground in depicting the jagged rhythms of addiction. From “The Panic in Needle Park” (an obvious precursor), to “Nurse Jackie,” and through countless novels and memoirs, the daily routines of getting high offer an inexhaustible reservoir of narrative incident and a smeary, gritty palette of moods. For Bobbie and Jude, each day is a series of problems to solve, and when things work as planned — when they can snatch a wallet, sell a bunch of stolen CDs or rip off a would-be john and then use the proceeds to buy drugs from a familiar dealer — they bask in a smug feeling of triumph. It’s more than just a chemical high; it’s a kind of moral victory over the cruelties and compromises of the square world.

The movie’s evident sympathy for them at times shades toward sentimentality, and the story that emerges from their hustling and scoring is dealt from a stacked deck. When Jude and Bobbie run their scams, the marks are doughy, greedy hypocrites. When things go wrong, there are brutal policemen and unfriendly dealers to contend with. Only near the end, when the luck and the dope run out and the grifting turns desperate, do they encounter kindness or compassion. Otherwise, “Animals” walks the fine line between acknowledging the romance of narcotics — something any honest movie about addiction must do — and actively romanticizing its sweet, basically harmless protagonists and their way of life.

But that equivocation is also part of what makes the film, within its modest scope, affecting and interesting. Mr. Schiffli shoots in a fluid style, tweaking colors and focus to register changes in perception and feeling. Anxiety dissolves in sunshine and dreamy music, gathers up again in darker colors and more dissonant sounds and then winds up to a pitch of panic. It’s awful and appealing, and much as you worry about Jude and Bobbie, you might envy them a little bit too.

Animals

Director

Collin Schiffli

Writer

David Dastmalchian

Stars

David Dastmalchian, Kim Shaw, John Heard, John Hoogenakker, John Lister

Running Time

1h 30m

Genre

Drama

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Animals

Opens on Friday

Directed by Collin Schiffli; written by David Dastmalchian; director of photography, Larkin Donley; edited by Amanda Griffin; music by Ian Hultquist; production design by Caity Birmingham; costumes by Kelsey Ettman; produced by Mary Pat Bentel, Mr. Dastmalchian, Mr. Schiffli and Chris Smith; released by Oscilloscope Laboratories. Running time: 1 hour 30 minutes. This film is not rated.